Palestinians plant 15 million trees to seize land.

I was contacted today by a representative of Im Tirtzu advising me, and asking me to share with the community and readers, the initiative that Im Tirtzu are doing ahead of Tu Bshvat (on January 21) in the event that it might be of interest. Tu Bshvat is the ‘New Year for Trees’ and to celebrate it new trees are planted.

To make a long story short, it was recently discovered that the Palestinian Authority, according to an internal report by the Israeli Civil Administration, is planting some 15 million trees to seize land and is engaged in a large attempt to seize large amounts of lands of Judaea and Samaria by planting olive trees and then claiming ownership.

Internal report by Israeli Civil Administration reveals the Palestinian Authority is promoting a plan to take over land by planting olive trees in the West Bank, particularly near Jewish communities.

Written by the head of the Agriculture Department of ICA and publicised by the Lavi civil-rights organisation, the report states that “according to data collected by the Palestinian ministry, the space on which the trees were planted amounts to some 975,000 dunams (241,000 acres) on which 14.7 million olive trees have been planted, 11.9 million of which bear fruit.”According to a special report by Regavim, from 2013 to 2017, hundreds of new agricultural sites that cover thousands of dunams were added; and more than 150 new roads were created, stretching over hundreds of kilometers.The implications of the ‘Palestinians’ “land grab”is important and clear. According to the Land Law, which applies to the West Bank as well, continuous processing of land allows the farmer to claim ownership of that land. According to Regavim’s report, Palestinian agricultural activity focuses on areas near Jewish communities and constitutes a strategic asset, since agricultural activity cuts off future territorial contiguity.

Im Tirtzu says that they were recently contacted by the community of Nokdim in Gush Etzion and were told that this is now occurring on their land, and therefore on this Tu Bshvat they will planting olive trees there to prevent this from happening.

Im Tirtzu (IMTI) is a non-profit organization working to strengthen the values of Zionism in Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. Established in 2006, IMTI has grown to become Israel’s largest and most influential grassroots Zionist organization.